lake

Varthur lake is the second-largest water body in Bengaluru. The 440-acre lake is located on the eastern periphery of the city, surrounded by villages and all the big IT companies. Over the last 20 years, a lot has changed and the lake has become infamous as one of the most polluted lakes in the city. From a pristine water body where people used to fish and bathe, it has now turned into a cesspool that froths and foams. It even catches fire! Concerned by the encroachment and degradation of the lake, residents came around to start a rejuvenation campaign. The…

Nearly every citizen of Bangalore has heard of the current state of two of Bangalore’s biggest lakes - the Varthur and Bellandur lakes. The main reasons for the pollution of these lakes are the untreated sewage and industrial effluents that are constantly flowing into the lake.  Map source: All you need to know about Bellandur lake and its problems. Though we all know that these lakes are in bad shape, many of us may not be aware of the extent of  pollution. Check these shocking pictures. VARTHUR LAKE   The froth that we usually see at the top surface of…

On Christmas Day, I went to the 4th Sunday outing of BngBirds, which I had organized this month at Hoskote Lake. It was foggy, and I got some mist-erious shots: Amongst other things, I noticed this godman getting ready for his day, donning the accoutrements of his trade (sorry, religion seems to be as much a profession these days as any other more-usual one!)   He had an assistant, who did not seem to need as much adornment as he did.   I asked them if I could take photographs, and he and his assistant nodded and carried on with…

Since the noon on Friday, Oct 21st, smoke continues to billow from the encroached land next to Bellandur lake, where an unofficial waste-sorting facility has mushroomed, where construction debris is dumped day in day out and where mixed waste from various apartments is dumped in broad daylight. It is clear that this has been created by burning rubber from construction debris, the plastic present in mixed waste and low-value dry waste from the waste sorting facility, in Bellandur ward 150, Kariyama Agara area. What are BBMP officials, the police and fire departments, our elected officials and others doing? Are we…

What should Bengaluru - institutions and its citizens - do in the immediate run and the long run, considering the Cauvery dispute and the limits to water scenario? Just remember that only a third among us, or maybe half, are in the Cauvery basin, the rest are not part of the Water Tribunal process. This city has been built on a ridge and in the basin of two rivers, though many of us may not even be able to name the rivers into which Bengaluru empties its sewage. Consider this – we are pumping 1400 million litres of water per…

Madiwala Lake will host the second Kere Habba of 2016 on 23rd Jan. The first Kere Habba was held earlier in January at Kaikondrahalli Lake and can be read about here. The schedule for the habba, starting at 7:00 a.m.,is as follows: 07:00 - Bird Watching07:30 - Yoga by the Lake08:00 - Cycling08:30 - Clay Modeling09:00 - Drawing/Sketching (only drawing sheets will be provided; participant to carry their own art materials)09:30 - Tree naming/Treasure Hunt10:00 - Local Craft10:30 - Talk by the LDA11:00 - Street Play For more details about Madiwala Kere Habba 2016, please contact: call 9845193233 | 9845073071 | 8861768806  email: madformadiwala@googlegroups.com | nbf@namma-bengaluru.orgfacebook: BetterB76 | nammabengalurufoundation It may be noted that…

Horamavu Parisara Abhivruddhi Samiti (HPAS), formerly called Save Horamavu Lakes, is joining hands with Janaagraha and BBMP to clean Horamavu! The Cleaning drive will be rolled out in several locations. VOLUNTEERS are needed this Saturday, 24th Oct at 8 a.m. in front of Homebuzz. Please register by clicking here, and filling out the form. Please join this effort in large numbers. For more information check the Facebook page here or email save-horamavu-lakes@googlegroups.com. 

Who wants to get up early on a Sunday morning and that too, to do work in a public space? Sunday, 26th July 2015 saw more than 150 students of Seshadripuram PU College, Yelahanka at Allalasandra Lake doing just this. Led by the NSS co-ordinators of the college, Dr Subhash, Mr Shantaveerappa and Dr Mune Gowda, the students spent over fours hours (8 a.m. to 12 noon) working along the walking track, pulling out overgrown weeds and collecting garbage.  The 44 acre Allalasandra Lake in Yelahanka New Town is on its way to revival having been watchfully nurtured over the last…

On 13th April, a sunny Monday, we (PNLIT trustees) saw water entering Puttenahalli Lake from the rainwater diversion channel at the lake entrance near the Brigade Millennium arch. It was so little that we thought it to be the usual wash from the adjacent MLR Convention Centre.    However, a couple of days later when we found it increasing in volume and forming a black stinking mass in front of the diversion channel at the lake bed, we immediately informed BWSSB and BBMP. BWSSB's Junior Engineer, Mr. Nagaraj came to inspect the spot. He said that the sewage drain connected to…

We are delighted to report the sighting of our winter visitor, the Garganey Duck. On 3rd Dec. when we went to the Puttenahalli lake at 3 p.m. we saw four of them. Typical of its highly territorial nature, the Eurasian Coot, one of our resident species  was busy chasing the ducks away. The quartet merely flew a short distance and made themselves comfortable once again. We hope they are joined by more of their ilk. To know more about this migratory species, see here.   The Garganey was sighted at Puttenahalli Lake for the first time in 2011, an event which was…